Today's guest is entrepreneur, keynote speaker, and unapologetic Canadian, Scott Stratten, who explains how his biggest mistake drove a mind-bogglingly successful viral video production company into bankruptcy--and how he pivoted back into success.
- Scott's biggest mistake was his lack of professional curiosity and overconfidence in his approach and product that left him blind to industry updates and progress. Ultimately, his loss of curiosity led to the bankruptcy of his previously successful video business in 2008 and the complete erasure of his speaking gigs during the Covid pandemic a decade later.
- On realizing his mistake, Scott eliminated distractions that only reinforced his error of self-admitted arrogance and proactively sought out opportunities which forced him to learn new things and make time for what really mattered -- personally and professionally. Professional enthusiasm was key.
- Today, Scott Stratten is resuming his keynote speaking engagements -- though on a greatly reduced schedule by design -- and experimenting with new platforms, including video-on-demand courses and live LinkedIn webcasts under his Unmarketing brand. You can find out more about Scott on Unmarketing.com, through any of his six business books coauthored with his wife Allison, and on Twitter @Unmarketing.
You can find this and other episodes of the Professional Confessional podcast at PC-Podcast.com or on your preferred podcasting platform of choice.
Do you want to come on and share your biggest professional mistake? Head to PC-Podcast.com/BeOurGuest to schedule your professional confessional.
In the meantime, please share this episode with someone you think needs to hear this today -- and share what you needed to hear in a review! The more often we rate and review our favorite podcasts, the more people will find out about our community and the more episodes I can make.
That's all for this Professional Confessional. I'm Ashley Stryker. Thanks again for tuning in, and I hope you'll join us next time. Talk soon!